Ultimate Online Forums
Go Back   Ultimate Online Forums > Off Topic Forums > Off Topic Area > Hot Topics

Hot Topics For discussion on main news stories hitting the headlines.

 
Thread Tools
Old 26th January 2006, 07:09 PM   #1
Thradia
*licks*
 
Thradia's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2004
Shard: Napa Valley
Posts: 1,352
Gold: 439
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Thradia the KindThradia the KindThradia the KindThradia the KindThradia the KindThradia the KindThradia the Kind
Scientists discover world's smallest fish

How cool is this!?



Quote:
BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) -- Scientists have discovered the world's smallest fish on record in an acidic peat swamp in Indonesia, with a see-through body and a head that is unprotected by a skeleton, researchers said Wednesday.

Mature females of the Paedocypris progenetica, a member of the carp family, only grow to 7.9 millimeters (0.31 inches) and the males have enlarged pelvic fins and exceptionally large muscles that may be used to grasp the females during copulation, researchers wrote in the Proceedings of the Royal Society, published Wednesday by the Royal Society in London.

"This is one of the strangest fish that I've seen in my whole career,' said Ralf Britz, zoologist at the Natural History Museum in London, who helped analyze the fish's skeleton.

"It's tiny, it lives in acid and it has these bizarre grasping fins. I hope we'll have time to find out more about them before their habitat disappears completely."

The previous record for small size, according to the Natural History Museum in London, was held by an 8-millimeter species of Indo-Pacific goby.

The new fish was discovered on Sumatra island by fish experts Maurice Kottelat from Switzerland and Tan Heok Hui from the Raffles Museum of Biodiversity Research in Singapore. They were working with colleagues from Indonesia and with Kai-Erik Witte from the Max Planck Institute in Germany.

"You don't wake up in the morning and think today we will find the smallest fish in the world," Kottelat told The Associated Press in a telephone interview from his home in Switzerland.

He said the record of finding the world's smallest fish was not important, preferring to focus on what he said was "scientifically significant."

"What's important is finding a complete vertebrae in a body so small," he said.

Kottelat said he first came across the fish in 1996, but originally misidentified it as a member of an already existing species. "But then we realized this one was different."

According to the researchers, the fish live in dark, tea-colored water with an acidity of ph 3, at least 100 times more acidic than rainwater. Swamps like this were once thought to harbor very few animals, but recent research has revealed that they are highly diverse and home to many species that occur nowhere else.

Peat swamps are under threat in Indonesia from fires lit by plantation owners and farmers as well as unchecked development and farming. Several populations of Paedocypris have already been lost, researchers say, according to the Natural History Museum.

Divider


Thradia is offline   Return to Top Reply With Quote
Old 26th January 2006, 08:47 PM   #2
Forum LegendAdri
Wearing metal panties in a lightning storm
 
Adri's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2004
Shard: Pacific/Landroval
Posts: 3,763
Gold: 5,912
My Mood:
Thanks: 177
Thanked 93 Times in 65 Posts
Adri The EstimableAdri The EstimableAdri The EstimableAdri The EstimableAdri The EstimableAdri The EstimableAdri The EstimableAdri The EstimableAdri The EstimableAdri The EstimableAdri The Estimable

Awards Showcase
Community Spirit Award 1st Place Winner 
Total Awards: 2

Re: Scientists discover world's smallest fish

Thats awesome, but sad that the environment they live in is being destroyed.

Divider

We are all broken and wounded in this world. Some choose to grow strong at the broken places.
--Harold J. Duarte-Bernhardt


Thanks to Atlas for the fantastic sig!
Adri is offline   Return to Top Reply With Quote
Old 26th January 2006, 10:12 PM   #3
UOForums AdministratorAlly
The Couch Hottie
 
Ally's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Shard: Lake Austin, Atlantic
Posts: 4,423
Gold: 3,133
My Mood:
Thanks: 37
Thanked 10 Times in 10 Posts
Ally the GoodAlly the GoodAlly the GoodAlly the GoodAlly the GoodAlly the GoodAlly the GoodAlly the GoodAlly the GoodAlly the GoodAlly the Good
Re: Scientists discover world's smallest fish

That's cool. Maybe now they'll take care of the area where the fish live. You never know what else might be there.

Divider


Lilypie 1st Birthday PicLilypie 1st Birthday Ticker
Ally is offline   Return to Top Reply With Quote
Old 27th January 2006, 07:12 AM   #4
Flutter
 
Flutter's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Shard: I am not entirely sure...
Posts: 806
Gold: 64
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Flutter the KindFlutter the KindFlutter the KindFlutter the KindFlutter the KindFlutter the KindFlutter the Kind
Re: Scientists discover world's smallest fish

Looks like the lil fishies we'd catch sometimes in the swamps in southern Louisiana.
I'm sure we were just catching baby fish though hehe.

Divider

Quote:
'Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former.' - Albert Einstein
Flutter is offline   Return to Top Reply With Quote
Old 28th January 2006, 10:26 AM   #5
Mapper
Europa for the win!
 
Mapper's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Shard: Europa
Posts: 285
Gold: 11
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Mapper the FairMapper the Fair
Re: Scientists discover world's smallest fish

Wow, Now that is small!

Divider

Mapper is offline   Return to Top Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks

Thread Tools

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off
Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Discover Planet Earth! Ezekiel Off Topic General Discussion 6 17th April 2007 02:22 PM
World's Shortest Fairytale - Women's Version Mercedes Jokes & Stuff 3 17th April 2007 01:49 PM
What is the world's longest abbreviation? Adri Off Topic General Discussion 3 26th September 2006 01:24 AM
The world's second richest man gives $44bn to charity Adam Hot Topics 3 27th June 2006 11:34 AM
Scientists Delay 2006 by One Second Thradia Hot Topics 7 26th December 2005 03:05 PM


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 10:28 AM.


Powered by vBulletin
Copyright ©2000 - 2008, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Search Engine Optimization by vBSEO 3.2.0
Template-Modifications by TMS
vBCredits v1.4 Copyright ©2007 - 2008, PixelFX Studios